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In this post I’ll rank the best Anua products for acne prone skin. Anua is a super popular Korean skincare brand with a lot of buzz surrounding the heartleaf extract products especially.
So, if the brand has piqued your interest, stay tuned for the best Anua serum, toner, cleanser and more.
Best Anua Products for Acne Prone Skin
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The best Anua products for acne
In this section I’ll share the Anua products that have the best chance at improving acne-prone skin.
1. Anua Heartleaf Quercetinol Pore Deep Cleansing Foam
This is a basic water based cleanser with key ingredients of salicylic acid and houttuynia cordata extract. Salicylic acid is generally very good for acne-prone skin, with some exceptions.
Me personally, I prefer to use a retinoid to control my acne-prone skin. However, so many people with acne respond well to salicylic acid. Check out my post on how to use retinol after salicylic acid cleanser together if you’re curious on how to combine them.
If you get on well with salicylic acid, this is definitely one of the best Anua products for acne. I’d recommend using it as a second cleanser in the evening.
However, don’t forget that this counts as exfoliating. Lots of people use salicylic acid cleansers and completely forget they’re exfoliating!
Too much exfoliation can weaken your skin barrier, leading to more annoying breakouts.
This is also one of the best Anua products for oily skin, but I would not recommend it for sensitive skin, and I probably wouldn’t use it daily either. Personally I prefer to use a serum or toner to deliver exfoliating acids, so you don’t have to worry about your cleanser doing too much.
2. Anua BHA 2% Gentle Exfoliating Toner
This is basically a copy of the best-selling toner from Paula’s Choice (2% BHA toner), but a Korean skincare version.
Because it contains salicylic acid, again, it is definitely one of the best Anua products for acne prone skin.
Salicylic acid is a chemical exfoliant that gently sweeps away dead skin cells. However, it works differently to exfoliants like AHA, for example. This is because it penetrates deeper into the pore and breaks up clogs and sebum blockages that cause acne.
Lots of people use the 2% BHA toner as a daily lotion, but I still think you should proceed with caution to preserve the skin barrier.
The Anua BHA toner benefits are:
- Improved skin tone with continued use
- Anti-inflammatory properties, skin looks calmer and clearer
- Smoother surface of the skin
- Reduced acne breakouts
Salicylic acid is the least compatible with dry skin, because it tackles oil so it is more suited to oily skin overall. This is why so many people with dry skin get along better with a retinoid for clogged pores than salicylic acid.
3. Anua Azelaic Acid 10 Hyaluron Redness Soothing Serum
Updating this post a few months after I wrote it to include the Anua Azelaic acid products!
I’ve been using 15% prescription azelaic acid for a couple of years now, and I love what it has done for my skin. If you can’t get your hands on anything prescription, though, these are a great alternative.
I wrote a whole page of recommendations for the best azelaic acid products for acne prone skin to explore. The main benefits are: an anti inflammatory effect on the skin, soothing of redness and/or rosacea, less acne lesions over time.
I love azelaic acid because it’s super gentle and can be tolerated by nearly everyone! You may experience some itching when you first adjust to it, so be mindful that that is normal.
This serum also comes in two strengths – 10% and 15%.
4. Anua Azelaic 10 Hyaluron Redness Soothing Pad
The main difference between the serum and these azelaic acid toner pads is the presence of niacinamide and the format. The 10% azleaic acid serum contains niacinamide, whereas these toner pads don’t. This is important if you’ve noticed your skin dislikes niacinamide, but no big deal if not.
I’d just choose which type of product you prefer to use. I am more of a serum person myself.
The best Anua products for oily skin
In case it wasn’t clear, I think the above salicylic acid cleanser and toner are both suitable for oily skin and acne prone skin.
However, just remember not to bombard your skin with BHA! Even oily skin can be sensitive and easily irritated. Less is more when it comes to skincare if you want to maintain healthy skin.
5. Anua’s Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil
Anua’s Heartleaf cleansing oil went viral on TikTok not too long ago. It may seem counterintuitive to suggest an oil cleanser for oily skin, but hear me out on this one!
Oil cleansers can really change the way your skin feels and behaves, I find. Oil cleansers do such a good, thorough job of cleansing that I think oily skin types may actually find some relief from their high sebum production.
This is how I’d use it in skincare routine:
- In the evening, apply the oil cleanser to dry skin to break down SPF and grime from the day.
- Massage in for 60 seconds, focusing on problem areas like the nose.
- Add a splash of water to emulsify the oil cleanser and massage for 10 seconds
- Rinse off, then apply your water based cleanser
A word of warning with this cleanser, though. Lots of people have reported it to break them out, which is unfortunate. You’ll only really know if you try it out yourself by patch testing, for example.
6. Anua Heartleaf LHA Moisture Peeling Gel
If salicylic acid is too much for your skin, you may like the LHA cleanser instead. This is a nice treatment cleanser for various skin concerns, such as rough or crusty texture or evening out skin tone.
LHA is generally gentler than salicylic acid, but still oil-loving, making it great for more sensitive, oily skin types. There aren’t many LHA cleansers at moment, so I think this is one of the best Anua products for oily skin.
Best Anua products for combination skin
Combination skin is a tricky one because really, everyone has combination skin.
Skin types were only really created to make it easier for us to pick products, skin types don’t truly exist and aren’t medically recognised – your skin also changes so much based on your cycle or age!
To find the best Anua products for combination skin depends on your unique combination, but I’ll suggest some I think will work best:
7. Anua Heartleaf 77% Toner Pads
These toner pads are one of Anua’s most viral skincare products.
Even if your skin leans more dry, these are generally well tolerated, so I think they should work well for combination skin, too.
These contain gluconolactone, otherwise known as polyhydroxy acid. It’s a very gentle type of exfoliating acid.
Over time, these can reduce dark spots, fade acne marks and smooth skin texture.
They also offer some intense hydration and barrier repair benefits, because they contain heartleaf extract, centella and madecassoside.
8. Anua Peach 70% Niacinamide Serum
This serum looks so good I could seriously eat it. It’s really a simple niacinamide serum that contains peach fruit extract.
I do think this would suit combination skin, but I don’t think it’s the best niacinamide serum available. Niacinamide is great for reducing sebum production in an oily T zone, for example. It can also fade hyperpigmentation and reduce acne breakouts.
However, this one contains fragrance which I’d suggest avoiding for most skin types.
Whilst I like that it also contains polyglutamic acid, ceramides and centella for added hydration, I just don’t think a niacinamide serum needs fragrance. I think niacinamide is certainly helpful for acne overall, but it isn’t strong enough to really reduce your acne as a whole.
Best Anua products for dry skin
The best Anua products for dry skin tend to be the cream and lotion-based products in the range. Hopefully my run down of each of these will help you find the right product for you:
9. Anua Heartleaf Intense 70% Intense Calming Cream
This is a predominantly silicone-based cream with a minimal ingredients list.
Silicones are great at trapping hydrating within the skin, but not all skin types get on with them equally.
I would suggest this cream if you have dry skin that’s not prone to breakouts. Personally I find silicones can really contribute to clogged pores and breakouts for me, but only if a product is super heavy in them (rather than one or two in a formula).
Is this Anua cream for oily skin? I would say that comes down to personal preference. Just because skin is oily, doesn’t mean you can’t use a richer cream at night.
Often people with oily skin find that their skin produces less oil when you give it products that hydrate it well. The worst mistake you can make with oily skin is to avoid moisturiser!
10. Anua Heartleaf 70% Daily Lotion
This is a new product from Anua that I haven’t seen before. It’s essentially a more lightweight version of the calming cream.
The ingredients are not too dissimilar, but it’s a lighter lotion rather than a thick cream. Just because it’s thinner, doesn’t mean it’s less hydrating for dry skin.
For this reason, I think it’s one of the best Anua products for dry skin. It can layer nicely under sun protection, for example, in a way that thicker moisturisers are just too much.
This contains 70% heart leaf extract, hylauronic acid and a silicone and to trap in moisture.
I am not sure this will work too well if you have very clog prone skin, check out my other moisturisers for acne prone skin.
11. Anua 7 Rice Ceramide Hydrating Barrier Serum
Anua’s whole Rice Ceramide line is perfect for dry skin, especially those who are not prone to breakouts. I don’t have anything especially against this line, but Anua can often use many ingredients which is something I try to avoid, as someone with acne prone skin.
If you have dry skin that doesn’t break out much, this serum could be perfect for you to add hydration into your skin. I’d recommend using it over a mist and under a moisturiser, then under SPF in the morning. This is a great way to pack and trap water back into the skin.
12. ANUA Rice 70 Glow Milky Toner
A milky toner is always nice to use for dry skin (honestly all skin types can benefit from one), and the Anua Rice 70+ Ceramide toner is a pretty good option.
This one has a high glycerin content to hydrate the skin, along with niacinamide, hyaluronic acid and panthenol. You could use this as a first step after cleansing on damp skin, or over your retinoid and before your moisturiser.
Best Anua serum for all skin types
The serum I like the most is one that works for all skin types – the Anua Heartleaf 80% Moisture Soothing Ampoule.
13. Anua Heartleaf 80% Moisture Soothing Ampoule
I think this serum is great because anyone and everyone can benefit from it, whether you have oily or dry skin.
It only has 12 ingredients, which I love. The less ingredients in a product means the less likely it is to cause breakouts.
It contains heartleaf extract and panthenol to soothe, with glycerin to add hydration. It’s simple and for that reason I think it’s a great choice for most skin types and concerns.
Best Anua toner for all skin types
There are two toners in the Anua skincare range, but only one is suitable for all skin types.
14. Anua Heartleaf 77% Soothing Toner
This toner is super viral but has very mixed reviews. It feels like you either love it or you hate it. Ingredients wise, it has a mild exfoliating effect, due to the sugarcane content.
It’s also very hydrating and soothing, because of the heartleaf extract, centella and glycerin. This is one of the best anua products for all skin types, because it is very lightweight and hydrating.
Out of the two toners they have, I think is is the best Anua toner, too.
Does the Anua cleanser cause purging?
Now I’ll answer some frequently asked questions from my socials, specifically about Anua products.
The Anua oil cleanser won’t cause purging, because it doesn’t contain anything in it that causes a purge.
Purging happens when you either speed up cell turnover, like using a retinoid, or chemically exfoliate.
If you’re breaking out while using the Anua cleanser, your skin probably just disagrees with it and you should discontinue it – it likely will not get better with continued use.
Anua oil cleanser breakout causes
Lots of people find that the Anua oil cleanser causes breakouts, it seems.
If you’re having an Anua oil cleanser breakout, this might have a few different causes:
- Your skin dislikes one or a few of the ingredients
- You haven’t washed the oil cleanser off properly by using a water based cleanser afterwards
- Perhaps you are allergic to centella or heartleaf, or are having a reaction in general
What are the best Anua skincare products?
There are no ultimate top Anua products, I think it heavily depends on your skincare routine and concerns.
This was the Best Anua Products for Acne Prone Skin. You may also like:
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